June 2004 Hot Rod Cars Readers' Rides

'66 Pontiac LeMansTim KeeDana Point, CAGoats may get all the hype, but these days, a LeMans is cheaper and virtually as good by the time you give it a hot-rodding rubdown. Besides, they look the same to the average schmoe. Tim's sports a rebuilt 326 with ported heads, a Comp cam, ACCEL ignition, and an Edelbrock 600-cfm carb and intake manifold. It was originally owned by his grandmother and has been in the family since 1966. Tim completed the restoration for under $13,000.

'68 Mustang GTKeith VogelQueensbury, NYKeith says his wife wants to cancel his subscription to HOT ROD because he keeps getting expensive ideas from us. All we can say is we're honored to have in some way inspired this creation. The 'Stang packs a 390ci mill topped with Edelbrock heads and intake manifold, a four-speed trans, and a 3.50:1-geared 9-inch rear. Ford Motorsport springs drop it down 2 inches and dual Flowmaster pipes supply the burble.

'74 Plymouth 'CudaRon ToppinsSanta Fe, TXEven when they're dressed in fake AAR stripes, you gotta love them Cudas, and the '74 is the least common of all model years. The 340 beneath the hood features Edelbrock heads and intake, a Holley 770-cfm carb, Hooker headers, Crane rockers, a mild cam, and an MSD ignition box. It's mated to a four-speed shifted by one of those nifty Pistol Grip handles. Except for the machine work, Ron put the entire car together at home.

'63 Chevy ImpalaPaul and Dee DanielsAllen, TXWe're glad the Daniels and their sweet Imp will join us for Power Tour this year. Believe it or not, it's still running on the original 327 motor with just 70,000 miles on the clock. A TH350, a beefed-up cooling system, and 3.08:1 gears come in handy on those long cruises, and a lowered stance over Cragar SS wheels lend an aggressive look. For a bit more scoot, a new heads-and-cam package is on the way.

'01 Plymouth ProwlerJoe KernerGreat Mills, MDHere are Joe's top four reasons why his car should be selected for Readers' Rides. 1) It's the very rare Black Tie Edition, one of only 163 built. 2) He drives it every day, even in the snow. 3) With a Borla cat-back exhaust and K&N cold-air kit, it's somewhat quick. 4) It's not a Camaro or a Mustang. That works for us. He says, "The Prowler gets under your skin to the point that you never want to drive anything else. I don't even care that it has no trunk space or practicality."

'73 Ford Gran TorinoDavid FischerMadison, OHRight after our March '04 issue hit the stands with the Starsky & Hutch car on the cover, a flurry of mid-'70s Gran Torino owners sent us pics of their two-ton sleds. David's street/strip machine packs a 460 big-block, a solid-lifter cam, an Offy intake, Hooker headers, and a Holley carb. Twisting a TCI coverter, 9-inch rearend, and Goodyear slicks, the mill delivers 12.68-at-107-mph timeslips.